Joint arthroplasty is a well-known surgical procedure by which a diseased and/or damaged natural joint is replaced by a prosthetic joint. For example, in a total knee arthroplasty surgical procedure, a patient's natural knee joint is partially or totally replaced by a prosthetic knee joint or knee prosthesis. A typical knee prosthesis includes a tibial tray, a femoral component, and a polymer insert or bearing positioned between the tibial tray and the femoral component. The tibial tray generally includes a plate having a stem extending distally therefrom, and the femoral component generally includes a pair of spaced apart condylar elements, which include surfaces that articulate with corresponding surfaces of the polymer bearing. The tibial tray is configured to be coupled to surgically-prepared patient's tibia, and the femoral component is configured to be coupled to a surgically-prepared distal end of a patient's femur.
Such a knee prosthesis may also include a number of elongated intramedullary stem components which are implanted in the patient's tibia and/or femur. To secure a stem component to the patient's tibia and/or femur, the intramedullary canal of the patient's tibia and/or femur is first surgically prepared (e.g., reamed) such that the stem component may be subsequently implanted therein. In some designs, the stem component is implanted in the patient's bone by use of cementless fixation. One type of such a design is known as a “press fit” stem component.